


Beastly

by HicSuntDracones



Category: Brave (2012), Frozen (2013), How to Train Your Dragon (Movies), Rise of the Guardians (2012), Tangled (2010), how to train your dragon books
Genre: AND THE CHARACTERS, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Because of Reasons, Deal With It, Dragons, Elementals, Emphasis On Happy Ending, Established Relationship, Everyone Is Gay, F/F, F/M, Fishlegs Sings, Fluff, Genderfluid Character, Hiccup has no shirt at some parts, High Fantasy, How Do I Tag, Human Toothless & Co., I should stop making ridiculpus tags, Implied Sexual Content, It is highly relevant to the plot, M/M, Magic, Multiple Crossovers, Non-Graphic Violence, Pain, Royalty, Shifters, The Author Regrets Everything, The Author Regrets Nothing, Toothless cannot get a date, Torture, What Have I Done, battles, for the reader, i don't care, i love how thats a tag, not really - Freeform, they're together
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-03
Updated: 2019-03-31
Packaged: 2019-08-16 19:59:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16501784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HicSuntDracones/pseuds/HicSuntDracones
Summary: Anord is a city of chaos, the best kind of magical chaos. Full of elementals, magicians, and a whole lot of shifters, ruled by the Night King. But there's a dark secret at the heart of the city, and as Hiccup and Jack get sucked into a world of danger and intrigue, they may not make it out alive.





	1. Hiccup is an Idiot, Among Other Things

**Author's Note:**

> Hey Hijackers! I don't know how many of you are out there in 2018, but I'm writing this anyway. So this is a completely original story, I did a ton of worldbuilding here and had a ton of fun with it, but I'm a bit concerned that I didn't explain things enough. If necessary, I will explain anything you guys have questions about before the start of Chap.2, but the point is for the details to unfold naturally, so unless I get specific asks, I'm staying with my system. Will try to post weekly/bi-weekly? No promises except that it will be finished at some point. I solemnly swear.(And yes that is an HP reference, get used to it, 90% of my vocab is fandom references) Enjoy Chap 1!  
> -Cazi ;-)  
> P.S. Shoutout to @bellecesca for helping me get my butt in gear(yes I'm going to keep saying it. I owe ya big time)  
> P.P.S. Rated Teen for future violent scenes, just to be safe, Not really sure how ratings work.

CLANG. CLANG. CLANG. Brrinng! Brrinng! The shop bell interrupts the smith's steady hammering. He tried to ignore it, he really had to get this dagger finished. CLANG. Brrinng! Brrinng! Brrinng! It came again, insistent. He finally looks up from his place at the forge, wiping the sweat off his face.

"Agggh! Cazi!" He throws the hot metal into a bucket of water, listening to the satisfying hiss of steam, then storms into the shop.

"Cazi, I swear if you take anymore merch, Gobber's going to kill you and I'm not going to...stop...him." His tirade falters as he sees who has walked into the shop, it is most certainly not his kleptomaniac friend.

A young woman a year or two older than him stands at the counter, flanked by two hulking guards in pitch black city uniforms. Her white blonde is perfectly arranged into a braided updo graced by a thin silver circlet decorated with a snowflake. The rest of her clothing seems designed to complement these two features; a light blue dress studded with sapphires hugging her curves, and a silver cloak fastened with a snowflake crest rests on her thin shoulders. Fine white gloves cover her hands. She had an aura of privilege to her, the kind belonging to someone who is used to getting what they want. This was probably true in her case, the circlet on her brow meant she was a noble, an Elemental noble at that. They ruled the city, and almost never left the Inner City, let alone visited the Beast's Quarter. Whatever she was here for, it was not going to end well.

The smith swallowed, then met the woman's gaze. She was staring at him with a mix of shock, alarm, and a bit of fear. _Shit. Shit. Shit._ What had he done? He looked around the shop and behind him, then down at himself. Shit. He wasn't wearing a shirt. He blushed like a tomato, which the entire room could see turn into a full body blush, then bodily dove behind the counter. He rummaged through the drawers, pulling out an apron and popping his head above the counter as he hurriedly tied it around his torso.

"Sorry about that, I was in the forge." He stood up completely, resting his arms on the counter. "What can I help you with Ms.....Lady....ummm?" He was an idiot. "Welcome to Gobber's...ahhh, we don't really have a name, but welcome anyway. I'm Hiccup, what do you need made or fixed? Owner's guarantee, if we can't make what you ask for, you get his right hook." He ran through his new-customer spiel, still very red, and really really hoping that the Elemental lady wouldn't blast him or something. Finally, she spoke,

"I'm looking for someone, a Jackson Overland. I spoke to someone who said he frequents this establishment." Oh Crap. What had Jack done now? No one called him Overland, ever. The only place that was even written as his name was the birth records in the city archives. Only nobles read those. This was Not Good. Mouth running ahead of his common sense, he folds his arms and snaps back,

"I'm not in the habit of just giving information to strangers. Who are you, first of all. Second, who did you talk to? And third, what do you want with Jack?" Great, now he just mouthed off to a noble. He was an idiot. The woman stares at him in surprise, then responds evenly,

"I am Duchess Elsa Arrendale, of the First Ice Court. Jackson is not in trouble, we merely need to speak to him about some personal matters. And if you really _must_ know," she fixes him with an icy stare, "We spoke to a young man named Snotface Snotlout. He said that Jackson lived here with his girlfriend, a Hic."

At the end of her sentence, Hiccup lets out a groan, "Snot!" he laments to no one in particular, rubbing his forehead as he addresses the Elemental...No, Duchess. "I'm Hic, Your Grace, short for Hiccup. I'm Jack's boyfriend. Snot....Snotlout, is my cousin, he likes to mess with people, me especially. You're sure Jack's not in trouble?"

Now Elsa was looking at him very funny. What did he say? Then she composed herself again, "Yes. Quite sure. Now may we please speak to him? This is quite urgent."

"Sure, I'll bring you right to him," he points his thumb towards the forge door," He's probably out back with the kids." At this, Elsa goes as white as her hair.

"You-you-you-you have children?" she stammers out.

"What? Oh, no, no, no, No! Gods no! Me and Jack, we....No!" Hiccup manages to splutter out, blushing bright red again and gesturing wildly with his hands. "No!" He adds one more time for good measure. "He watches the neighborhood kids on market days! They're not ours! We're...we haven't....we're not even mates yet...uggh" He lets out a long groan and sinks down to the counter, face in his hands. "I'll just take you to him. It's this way."

He stands and turns, walking back into the forge, looking briefly behind him to make sure the duchess is following. This was going fantastic...not. At this rate he was going to flash her or something. Luckily he manages to avoid any incidents as he leads them through the forge, emerging behind the tenement to a dirt and grass commons area filled with children and hopefully his boyfriend.

The kids were in the middle of an epic snowball fight, running around in circles laughing and screaming. Powers were in use left and right as snow-and other things-flew through the air. Shifter kids were turning into their animal forms and running around as bears, lions, and dragons; magicians were flinging pink and purple spells at each other; Animators were building small fighting toys out of sticks and mud; and young elementals were pushing each other around with wind and earth and water. At the center of all the chaos was the man Hiccup was looking for, and quite honestly couldn't keep his eyes off of. He had silver white hair, ice blue eyes, and an infectious smile on his face as he flung snow around with a crooked shepard's staff, battling the hordes of children indiscriminately. Jack Frost.

He pauses as Hiccup waves at him, "Hey Hic! Come join us! I'll bet I can kick your-" he's interrupted by a snowball to the face. The entire group freezes(one or two literally-ice spells) as Jack turns around, a dangerous look on his face.

"Okay, who did it?" Instantly every child points at one boy, screaming in unison, "Jamie!" The poor boy looks terrified as Jack's face erupted into a wicked grin as he yelled, "No one beats Jack Frost at a snowball fight!" With a wave of his staff, three glowing snowballs appear, floating in mid air. With a wink, he sends them flying after the boy. To the kid's credit, he does try to run, dodging in between his friends and picking up a stick to try and bat the enchanted snow away. But his efforts are in vain; as he manages to get a hit on one, the other two hit him in the back in quick succession, knocking him face first into a snowbank. He comes up smiling though, shouting,

"I got a hit on Frost!"

Quickly the yard fades into chaos once more as Hiccup tries and fails to attract Jack's attention again. Finally, with a long suffering sigh, he turns to Elsa,

"You and your guards might want to cover your ears Your Grace."

"Why?" One of the guards growls.

"You'll see." He replies cryptically as they grudgingly cover their ears. He turns around, then spins on his heel-hey, you got to put on a show-and shifts. Wings erupt from shoulder blades, fingers elongate into claws, scales spread across his skin as he grows bigger and bigger. In seconds, a midnight black dragon with emerald eyes stands where the smith had. The dragon observes the children at play for a moment, then roars. The roar reverberates against the buildings surrounding the commons, shaking the grass, the earth, the people. Everyone who hadn't before was now scrambling to cover their ears at the sudden explosion of noise. You could feel this roar in your bones. As it finally died down, Hiccup shifted back to meet the stares of the entire commons.

"Jack!" he shouts, "I have some people here who want to talk to you!" A chorus of 'Oooh! You're in trouble!' erupts from the kids. Jack brushes it off as he jogs over, barefoot, slinging an arm around Hiccup's waist and pecking him on the cheek.

"What's up Hiccy?"

"These guys-" Hiccup is cut off by Elsa,

"Jackson Overland?" she queries in a prim voice, looking sternly at the two intertwined men.

"That's me!" The man in question replies cheerily, "But I go by Frost now, Haddock if this bum ever gets his act together." He bumps their hips together with a smile as Hiccup goes bright red for the third time in ten minutes.

" _Jack!_ " The silver haired man grins cheekily at the other adults as Elsa continues,

"That subject, well, not this subject," she gestures at them, "The subject of your name is actually what I've come here to discuss with you." A snowball crashes into a wall a few feet away, and the guards jump in surprise. "Can we go somewhere more private? This is a delicate matter, and I would prefer not to have it interrupted by an errant projectile."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think that went well.*explosion in the background* Told you I'd keep up the references.  
> Still internally debating whether Hiccup would say 'shit' or not, but after some thinking I realized that it's probably a majority of his internal monologue. And before you say anything, yes the shirtlessness is semi-relevant to the plot. It is.....there is a literary reason for it. I swear, my master plans will be revealed at some point. But for the meantime, enjoy the pleasant mental image, I know I did. <\---That sounds creepy, it's not, I just have crushes on fictional characters.  
> This chapter is just a taste of what's to come, I have Chapter 2 in editing right now where more will be explained, the world building will continue, and Hiccup will blush more. Stay tuned, it will probably be up in the next few days(I have a mini-vacation coming up because of some teacher conference thing) Chapters will get longer as the plot progresses.  
> Hope you enjoyed it!  
> Oh, and I almost forgot, I'm on Tumblr as @hairasuntouchedaspartoftheamazon  
> Check there for updates on this and my other stories.


	2. Welcome to the Wilderwest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a whopper, my excuse for why it took so long. Hope you enjoy, notes at the end.  
> -Cazi ;-)

Anord is a city of pure chaos. Theoretically ruled by an Elemental nobility in the Inner City, everyone knows that it's really all about power; who has it, who wants it, and what you're willing to do to get it. The nobility will tell you that there are three neat rings to the city. The First Ring, immediately outside their precious Inner City, encapsulating their overflow of palaces, slaves, and wealth; full of those with little or no power and some Animators. The Second Ring, home to everyone the royals needed but wanted to keep at arm’s length, mostly animators and magicians. After that was the Third Ring, the 'slums' of Anord, filled with beasts, magicians, and chaos. No one in their right mind went out there except the body collectors. At least, that's how the royals thought it worked.

In reality, no one outside the Inner City has called anything 'Rings' in years, if not decades. Everywhere was messy, chaotic, chopped up into territories ruled by clans and tribes of every shape and size. The original system still had some effect; there were more shifters in the outer reaches of the city, and more animators closer to the Inner City. But beyond that, the territories were ever changing, both by their borders and inhabitants. The entire city lived and breathed these changes; if magician territory shifted east a few blocks, you had to move with it or find new protection. The tribes were the law of the land, far more respected than the pitch black royal soldiers that occasionally roamed the streets.

He'd known this since he was a kid, lived and breathed it like the rest of the city, maybe even more as the son of a chief. He was supposed to lead one of the territories someday soon. Not that he wanted to. He had little to no interest in remembering what clan they happened to be fighting that week, or who were their temporary friends, or other such political nonsense. But his father insisted. He was going to lead the Hooligan tribe one day, and possibly the Wilderwest. The largest of the shifter territories, the Wilderwest was the outermost reaches of the city, as far as you could get from the Inner City. Just the way they liked it.

Just outside the Wilderwest were the other shifter territories, Asgard and Beastbroch. The only real difference between the territories was the surplus of magicians in the latter two, while the Wilderwest had a bit of everything. Shifters, magicians, animators, and some elementals. No one connected to royalty of course, mostly families who had been kicked out of the First Ring at some point and never went back. The three of these made up the Shifter Territories, nicknamed the Beast's Quarter by half the city. They were infamous for being loud, chaotic, and having a serious problem with authority. Royals avoided coming here whenever possible.

So why in Hel was a Duchess here?

He was still questioning her sudden appearance as Jack's voice pulls him out of his trance.

"Sure!" Crap, he should have been listening. What did Jack just agree to?

"What?" He shakes his head, looking between Jack and Elsa, trying to pick up on whatever was just said.

"Pay attention beast." One of the guards hisses, hand going to the hilt of his sword.

"What did you just call me?"

"Manners," Elsa interrupts, hand in the air. "They just invited us into their home, the least we owe them is common courtesy." The guard reluctantly lowers his hand, glaring at Hiccup. The duchess turns around to face him and Jack, motioning towards the building, "Lead the way."

Jack grabs his hand and races towards the building, showcasing his inability to simply walk anywhere.

"Jack! Wait!" He pulls and manages to drag him back to the other adults, "They need to be able to follow us."

"Oh yeah, sorry" Jack mutters as they all turn to go together, sliding his staff into the back of his shirt. As they begin to walk away, one of the children, a little redhead with bright green eyes, gives a shout.

"Jack!Where are you going?"

"Don't worry Torch, I'll bring him back!" Hiccup yells back, turning around. The mumbling something along the lines of 'dumb brother likes my boyfriend better than me'. he shouts again, "Go bother Toothless!" At this, Torch gives a little maniacal grin very similar to their cousin's, yelling to get the other children's attention.

"We have a new target guys! You heard the man! Charge!" The mob of children runs towards another building, screaming the whole way as they set off to find their newest victim...he meant babysitter.

"Nice job throwing Toothless to the wolves." Jack comments as they walk towards the forge, Elsa and guards in tow. Hiccup turns on him, whispering furiously,

"What did you do?"

"Nothing!" Hiccup fixes him with a stare. "Nothing recent...."

"Jack! That lady is a Duchess! From the Ice Court! And she's asking for you by Overland!"

"But I didn't do anything!"

"Why else would she be out here?"

The conversation continues in this manner as they lead their guests through the forge. Grump, sleeping peacefully in the corner, narrowly misses burping lava on one of the guards. Hiccup fiddles with his braids anxiously, they're going to get sent to prison, aren't they? Great, now Dagur's going to call them prison buddies and...Jack grabs his hand and shoots him a smile as they walk up the stairs, and the tension melts away at that simple gesture. He gives a little smile back. He can never stay mad at him for long.

"Watch your feet!" Jack calls as they emerge onto the second floor. Technically storage for the forge, it's really the place where junk goes to die. Piles of scrap metal, tools, and assorted paraphernalia of Gobber's stand in crazy ceiling high piles, spilling some of their contents onto the floor. The two expertly weave through the mess, heading for one of the half dozen doors lining the walls. The guards push past them, going to the closest door, and they're about to open it when he interrupts, grabbing an armored arm and pulling,

"Not that door!" The guard shakes him off with a look of absolute disgust, and he steps back, scalded by the hostility.

"Something in there we should know about?" The other guard threatens, stepping forward to stare him down. Jack jumps in between the two, hands raised in an attempt to diffuse the tension.

"You don't want to go in there," he addresses the guard. "That leads to Gobber's house. He owns the forge downstairs and lives next door. Believe me, you do not want to walk in on him. When he's home alone, he only wears underwear-if that" he adds with small grimace. "This door," Jack leads them to the door they were heading for originally, "has a much lower casualty rate." He grabs Hiccup's hand again as they open the door, leading the retinue up a set of narrow stairs into their little apartment. It's small, but it's home.

The apartment is really just one big room with a large shuttered window facing the stairs, a few wall hangings and coat pegs surrounding it. On the right wall is a small fireplace surrounded by a few plush chairs-none of which match-and a horrendous red rug, a gift from Astrid, which was the only reason they still had it, they had an interest in staying alive. The opposite wall had a small kitchen consisting of a few cabinets and a counter, which Jack goes to sit on as he rummages through their mostly empty cabinets. Forget about walking, he couldn't sit like a normal person either. Hiccup turns to the Duchess,

"Give me a moment, please." He goes to a ladder next to the stairs, climbing up to their bedroom and grabbing a shirt off the floor. He pulls it on, throwing his apron over a chair and sliding down the ladder. His prosthetic thuds against the floor as he lands.

"All good!" He announces, only to falter at the Duchess' stare. This woman was too easily startled. What had he done this time?

"What happened to your foot?" she asks tentatively.

Oh, that's what she was worried about? It wasn't that big a deal, most people around here were missing a limb or two, look at Gobber. "Dragon attack," he answers simply. "Up until a few years ago we had a big problem with the wild dragons. Lost this in battle."

"Don't be so modest," Jack chimes in from his perch on the counter, munching on some biscuits. He slips to the ground, walking over and joining the conversation, crunching loudly. "We all fought against their queen, but my Hic here and his brother gave her the final blow."He says proudly before muttering, "Paid for it too" as he glances at Hiccup's foot.

Hiccup grabs his hand, squeezing gently,"Hey, it turned out alright in the end. Lost a leg, gained a boyfriend." He jokes.

"What?" Elsa interrupts.

Jack rubs his neck as he explains, "We kinda got together after the battle. There was a while where we thought Hic wasn't going to make it, and I might have said some things I didn't think he could hear...."

"More like confessed your undying love-"

"Hey! I was worried okay! And you were emotional too!"

"I'd just lost a foot!"

Elsa gives a little cough, "Gentlemen?" The two pause where they stand nose to nose, well, more like nose to forehead, Hiccup enjoying his slight height advantage. "My apologies, I didn't mean to start an argument, I was merely curious. I have never seen a crippled beast before."

"No, it's fine, we were just messing-wait, what did you say? A crippled beast?" He almost whispers the last part.

"Hic is not crippled-"

"What do you think we do?" He turns on the Duchess, "Do you think we kill people off when they get injured? We're not animals you know." Well, they can turn into them, but that is not the point right now!

"Hey!" They guards push in front of Elsa, creating a barrier between her and Hiccup. "Don't be disrespecting Her Grace. She can call ye what she likes, _beast_." He spits the last word. Asshole.

"How about we put our differences aside and discuss the matter at hand? Please sit." Who is this woman? Calling him a beast, telling them to sit in their own house? Yeah, she might be a noble...wait, yeah, she was a noble. Probably going to send them to jail. Great. He sits on one of the chairs-his favorite squishy green one-and Jack, child that he is, decides to sit practically in his lap instead of on the perfectly empty chair next to him. Not that Hiccup's complaining. Elsa sits primly, watching them with something bordering on pity in her eyes. That's not uncommon, considering the entire Wilderwest knows Jack's reputation for trouble, but he quickly realizes that her gaze isn't focused on him and Jack, but on his peg leg. Oh great, another apologist. If she says she's sorry for his loss-

"Let's get straight to business, shall we?" Her prim voice interrupts his train of thought. She opens her hand, and one of the guards summons a folder from nowhere. Conjuring magician. Interesting. Elsa flips a few pages, scanning them, then addressing Jack,

"Jackson, am I correct in stating that you are an Ice Elemental?" Jack gives her an 'are you kidding me' look, and Hiccup elbows him.

"Well, with all due respect your Ladyship," Hiccup face palms, ticking off the Duchess is not going to help them, "You did just see me conjure a whole bunch of snowballs and a snowbank, right?" The Duchess just gives him a flat stare,

"I did, but it pays to check the facts Mr. Overland, as this scenario proves." That's it, they're going to jail. Life was over, he was going to have to ask Cazi to break them out-

"Your birthday is the winter solstice, correct?" Elsa continues with her questions.

"Yeah."

"And you are nineteen years of age?"

"Hic says I act like a five year old, but yeah." Why in Helheim is this important? If they're going to jail, they wouldn't be asking questions about their birthdays. What is going on?

"Am I also correct in stating that until your fifteenth summer you were a resident of one of the city orphanages in the Third Ring?" Oh no.

"What? Oh, you mean Corona. Yeah, I was in Burgess's Children's Home..." Jack trails off, grabbing Hiccups hand almost reflexively. Hiccup squeezes back as Jack shuts his eyes, shoulders tensing. He rubs little circles into Jack's lower back with his other hand. He glares at Elsa. How dare she come in here and start talking about Burgess's? Jack had terrible memories of that place. He'd been left there as a toddler-he had no memories of his parents-and forgotten about. City orphanages were overcrowded, understaffed, and cruel. Jack had been invisible there, barely eating, growing up skinny, scrawny, and unseen. He'd recovered a lot since he left, but a mention of the place was still enough to turn him back into a scared and lonely kid. Elsa continues on, oblivious to Jack's discomfort.

"And from your fifteenth summer to your eighteenth birthday you were the legal ward of...Gobber the Belch? In the Third Ring?"

Hiccup answers for Jack, who squeezes his hand again, eyes unfocused, still somewhere in the past."Yes, he was."

"And you are currently living here with Mr...." She forgot his name already. How nice. Jack speaks quietly,

"Haddock, and yes." They've been living together over a year now, since Hiccup's eighteenth birthday, much to Stoick's chagrin, and the amusement of Hiccup's brothers. Gobber had offered them the space above the forge, and they'd moved in basically the second Stoick turned his back. They were adults after all...even if they went to the Haddock house almost every night because neither of them could cook. Granted, no one there could cook either, but Gobber fed them all. And none of this is Elsa's concern.

"And what is the nature of your relationship with Mr. Haddock?" That's it.

"What's the point of all this?" He bursts out. "Why do you need to know about our personal lives?"

"We need to ensure your identity Jackson." The Duchess states, completely ignoring Hiccup.

"Why?" Jack is finally in the present again, and looking annoyed.

"We have been looking for you for a very long time."

"What do you mean?"

"I am only sorry it has taken us this long."

"What's going on?" Hiccup wants to shout. This woman is giving them no answers!

"I might as well start from the beginning." She intones. "Nineteen years ago, there was an attack on the Ice Court. Pirates came up from the port and broke into the treasury. In the attack, the Princess Mary and her consort were killed, and their infant son kidnapped, presumably for ransom. But a ransom note was never received, and the Court assumed the child had been killed.”

“What does this have to do with us?” Jack interrupts, and Hiccup continues,

“If you’re going to try and accuse us of piracy, we have witnesses that will be able to tell you that we were babies at the time.”

“Why on earth would you think the Court wants to arrest you for piracy?”

“More ridiculous things have come out of the courts,”he mumbles. Taxes, curfews, all sorts of crap meant to control the ‘beasts’. Elsa gives him a glare before once again turning to Jack,

“What it has to do with you is that about two years ago, the navy captured a smuggling ship, and upon interrogation, we found that one of the men was involved in the treasury attack. Obviously he was questioned as to the fate of the infant prince. He did not want to reveal anything, but he eventually disclosed that the pirates had no killed the child, but instead gave him away. Apparently they had no intention of kidnapping him for ransom, and had no idea what to do with an infant, so on the way out of the city they left the child at one of their grandmother’s house if you can believe it. The Courts worked to track down the woman, but discovered that she had passed away about seventeen years ago. She had no knowledge that the child she had cared for was the prince. No one did. It was difficult, but the court eventually discovered what happened to the child. He was taken to one of the city orphanages under the late woman’s name.”

“What are you saying?” Jack practically whispers, voice low, eyes wide.

“I am saying that the woman’s name was Overland, and the child was left at the Burgess’s Children’s Home.”

“So I’m the….”

“So he’s the....”

“You’re the proper age, you share the same birthday as the prince, and you are the spitting image of the late Princess and her consort.” She delivers flatly, extracting a piece of paper from her file, a small drawing of a man and a woman. She hands it to Jack, who grabs it like a lifeline. Hiccup looks over his shoulder; Jack looked just like the man, and he had the woman’s eyes. Those ice-blue eyes frantically flick from the picture to Elsa to Hiccup and back to the picture again. He stands up on the chair, almost stepping on Hiccup as he turns in a circle and falls to the ground with a thud. Elsa and the guards lean forward, concern on their faces, and Jack almost hits one guard in the chest as he springs up from the floor and starts pacing in circles around the room.

“I can’t...they’re my...this is...holy shit...you can’t be...I look…” he mumbles frantically as he paces. Hiccup gets up and grabs his shoulders from behind, spinning him in a circle so they’re face to face.

“Hey, hey, Jack, calm down for a second.”

“Hic! These are my parents! Look!” He shoves the paper in Hiccup’s face with a crazy smile. He smiles back softly.

“Yeah, you look just like them.” He really does. The only way Jack could look more like them is if he wore a crown.

Jack bursts out, “This...it’s..this is absolutely crazy! I’m…” Elsa stands, a small smile on her face for the first time since they’d met.

“Prince of the First Ice Court”

Then a dragon flies through the window. CRASH! A crash interrupts Elsa’s declaration as a large black dragon slams the shutters open and lands on the floor with a thud, a small red headed boy dangling from his mouth. The dragon is practically identical to Hiccup’s dragon form, with the exception of the eyes; acid green with gold flecks. They smolder as if they’re about to set something aflame as the dragon shoves the small boy to the ground.  The dragon marches over to the pegs on the wall and grabs a large fur cloak in it’s mouth before shifting down to a very tan, very naked young man who wraps the cloak around himself before turning on Hiccup, leaving a metal and fabric tailfin clattering to the floor.

“Hiccup!” He shouts, eyes flashing. “Why in Thor’s name did you tell this little demon to bother me?!”

“Toothless-” He begins, trying to tell him about the Duchess.

“No! I was _this_ close to getting Stormfly to go out with me!” He gestures wildly, running a free hand through his choppy black hair.

“Toothless-”

“No! It was perfect! Wodensfang finally agreed to be my wingman and there’s the dance at the hall in a few days and it was all going great, she was flirting back and everything, but then the little monster and his buddies storm in, kidnap Wo, and burn a hole in my favorite tunic! Stormfly laughed at me!” Jack snorted at this,

“Like she doesn’t already.”

“Don’t start with me Frost! I’m willing to bet that this is your fault somehow! Probably ditching the kids so you can go make out with my brother!” he turns to Torch, “And you! What did I tell you, you don’t leave them alone together!”

“TOOTHLESS!”

“What?! Oh, now you have shame! What about when I walked in on you to making out shirtless last week?”

“Toothless! We. Have. Visitors!” Hiccup finally gets his sentence out, bright red once more standing and pointing to Elsa and the guards, who were looking as if they wished they hadn’t come.

“Oh.” This flat admission sends Torch into a fit of giggles on the ground as Hiccup sinks back into the chair with his face in his hands. He’s going to kill him. The useless reptile, he’s going to kill him. Jack returned his gaze to the picture, used to the brother’s dramatics, and Elsa looked rather disturbed at the whole situation. Toothless ignores this, walking over to the duchess and dropping into a low bow.

“Welcome to the Wilderwest, Your Grace.” Kiss-ass. Elsa nods gracefully, face white as bone. One of the guards mumbles,

“At least one of them has manners.”

As Toothless stands, Elsa asks quietly, “Where are your clothes?”

“Oh, uh, see, I was shifting, and there’s a spell thingy,you see, and I don’t really trust spells, they’re itchy-” Jack interrupts from the chair, eyes still glued to the drawing,

“You lose your clothes when you shift. There’s a spell you can have done that helps you keep them through shifting, but the bonehead spends so much time as a dragon that he refuses to get the spell done. Says it’s useless.” Hiccup can’t help but grin. Even in the middle of the world exploding, Jack is still insulting Toothless, still being a smartass know-it-all about magic.

“Oh. Well then, ah…” Elsa seems uncertain, but then composed herself. “Shall we get back to the conversation at-” She’s interrupted again by a shout.

“TOOTHLESS!” Someone is stomping up the stairs.

“Oh shit.” Toothless mutters as Stoick the Vast marches into the room, all seven feet and three hundred pounds of him.

“Toothless,” he says in a dangerously calm voice,”Why is there a mob of children outside my door claiming you’ve eaten Torch and stranded three others on top of Mildew’s house?”

“Because I did? Well, I didn’t eat Torch, he’s right over there, but there are three kids on top of Mildew’s.”

“Why in the name of all the gods would you do that-” Stoick pauses his rant, noticing Elsa. “Who is that?” He asks no one in particular before taking in the circlet and guards. “Your Grace, if my son has done anything to offend you, I apologize-” He is cut off by a raised hand from Elsa.

“Who are you and who is your son?” She asks, patience gone. Stoick stands taller, if that is even possible.

“I am Stoick the Vast, High and Terrible Chieftain of the Hairy Hooligan Tribe and representative of the Wilderwest. These three boys are my sons.” He gestures to each of them in turn,” Hiccup, my eldest. Toothless, his twin, and Torch, my youngest.”

“Well then Stoick, none of your children have done anything wrong. I am only here to collect Jackson.” At that statement, all Hel breaks loose.

“Wait a minute, what do you mean collect?” Hiccup demands, joined by Jack,

“Yeah, I’m not going anywhere.”

“What’s going on? Why is Jack leaving?” Torch wanders into the middle of the conversation.

“Who cares? Good riddance to the twerp.”

“Toothless!”

“Oh, you know I’m kidding. Probably.”

“If you will all just-”

“What did you do Frost?”

“Nothing! I’m actually not in trouble this time!”

“He is not in trouble, if you will-”

“Where are you going?”

“Nowhere.”

“Can we please just-”

“What’s going on?”

“I don’t know, ask Frostbite.”

“Dad-”

All conversation stops as Torch bursts into flames. Everyone jumps back, trying to get as far away from the flaming boy as possible. Hiccup has to stifle a laugh at the look on the guards faces. When Torch finally dies down with an apologetic smile, he goes to find some water, as he usually does after his spontaneous combustions. But the guards grab his arms, and he cries out.

“What are you doing with my son!” Stoick bellows.

“That was a direct attack on the Duchess!”

Hiccup marches forward and stands toe to toe with one of the guards, “It wasn’t an attack! He’s a nine year old Typhoomerang shifter! He can’t control when he flames up!” Toothless joins,

“It wasn’t on purpose, but if you don’t release him, I can show you what a real attack looks like.” He threatens.

“Release him.”Elsa commands. “He’s only a child, and it appears that this was not intentional.” The guards drop Torch roughly to the ground, in seconds he has shifted and flown out the window. Hiccup is going to have to talk to him later, he’s probably terrified. Dragons, especially young ones, hate nothing more than being confined.

“Now, if we can return to the business at hand.” Elsa says sternly.”Jackson, I apologize if I have not made my intentions clear, but these men and I are here to take you home. We have been searching for you for years, and now you can finally assume your rightful place as a member and future ruler of the Ice Court.”

“Yeah, no.”

“What do you mean, no?” Elsa replies, shocked.

“Since when is Frostbutt a member of the Ice Court?”

“Since about five minutes ago.”

“I’m not going anywhere.”

  
“Do not be ridiculous Jackson, you will be coming with us.”

“No he won’t.” Hiccup stands between Jack and Elsa.

“Son, what’s going on?”

  
“Jackson, are they holding you against your will?”

“What? No!”

“If you resist His Highness’ move, we are authorized to use lethal force.” The guards looked a bit too happy about that.

“I’m resisting this move, not them!I don’t care if I’m…” Jack struggles with the word, ”Prince of the Ice Court, that-that doesn’t mean I’m leaving my whole life here! You’ve made it this long without me, I’m sure you can survive another nineteen years without me, maybe learn some manners while you’re at it. Now bye! Hope you remember the way out, ‘cause I’m not coming with you.”

“Will someone explain what is going on!” Stoick barks. “If you have business with this boy, I have a right to know about it as his chief. Jack, sit down!” Jack is trying to sneak down the stairs, but a glare from Stoick makes him sit on a chair with a pout, dragging Hiccup down with him as he sulks. “Thank you. Now,” Stoick turns back to Elsa,”Your Grace, what is your business here?”

“It is quite simple actually. Jackson is the lost prince of the Ice Court, and I am here to take him home. We have evidence to prove his identity, and as soon as he packs whatever possessions he is inclined to bring, we shall be on our way.” Stoick takes the news surprisingly well.

“Well, I can’t stop you.”

“Dad!”

“But he can.” Stoick gestures to Jack, and the room falls silent apart from the sound of Toothless picking at a hangnail. “If Frost really is the Prince of the Ice Court, then he outranks you. So, if you’ll excuse me, I have some children to get off a roof. Toothless.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m coming, I’ll meet you there.” With that, Stoick marches out of the room with a small bow to the Duchess. Toothless copies the bow before shifting back into a dragon and picking up his tailfin, walking over to Hiccup.

“If you’ll excuse me.” He kneels next to Toothless, strapping the fin on as he mutters, “You are so dead later.”

“ _Yow yaks_ ” Toothless coos.*

“ _Me is yaks_ ”** He responds, tightening the fin a bit more than necessary. Toothless waves his tail around to test, then jumps and flies out the window without another word. _Lacksmart Brudda_.***

Hiccup is the first to speak after Toothless leaves. “Well, you heard the Chief, you can’t force him to go. If Jack wants to stay, he can stay.” He turns his gaze towards Jack.

“And I want to stay.” Jack stands next to him.

“Please don’t make a hasty decision Jackson. Look at this logically. The Ice Court is your family. I am your cousin. There are plenty of people who would love to meet you.” His thoughts blank out to one thing: Jack has family. Jack has family. Jack has family. For years they’d just assumed his parents were dead, that he had been at the orphanage because he had no living family. But he did, this stupid duchess was saying he did have family. Family like Elsa-”And beside that, this is an opportunity to escape this place.”

“What do you mean by that?” Jack asks suspiciously.

“Well, excuse my impropriety, but it is not as if this is the most pleasant place to live. The buildings are small and cramped, the neighborhood appears violent and messy, and these people are not really fit for socializing with a prince. You are living with a beast, Jackson.” She says softly as she takes his hands. “If you come with me, you can leave them all behind. They won’t be able to control you anymore.” Jack yanks his hands away, livid.

“They don’t control me! I’m here by choice! The people here are my friends, this is my home! I’m not living with a beast, I’m living with my boyfriend, and I don’t care who you are, you have no right to come in here and try to take my life away!” As he speaks, frost begins to spread out from under his bare feet in time with his emotions. Hiccup rushes forward to grab his hand,

“Hey, Jack, the ice.” He whispers. This happens whenever Jack gets overwhelmed. They’d always wondered why he was so powerful, now they knew. Jack takes a breath and looks down.

“Oh, sorry.” Jack mutters as he banishes the ice. “But I mean what I said.”

“So do I. I cannot force you to come, but think about it. The Court can provide you with a better life, the one you were meant to have.” Hiccup grips Jack’s hand tighter,

“He said no.” But maybe he should have said yes. Elsa gives him a glare.

“Very well then. We shall be in contact, Jackson. We can see ourselves out.” With that, she turns with a dramatic twirl of her cape, going down the stairs and disappearing with the close of the door.

They both breathe for the first time in what feels like forever as she leaves.

“Did that just happen?” Jack asks incredulously.

“Unfortunately, I think so.” They pause.

“What assholes!” They exclaim in unison, collapsing onto a chair as they erupt in laughter, mocking their guests.

“Well, I say, beasts should show respect!”

“Watch your mouth your highness, don’t let such a filthy word sully your reputation!”

“Oh no, I’m late for my daily bath in molten gold!”

“Don’t forget your silver towels!”

“How could I, they’re more obnoxious than my dear cousin!” Hiccup snorts. They laugh until their sides ache, and they lean against each other as they quiet down. Jack sighs.

“What do you think they meant by contact?”

“Hopefully the same thing the engineers guild meant for Norbert.”

“We’ll never talk to you again and pretend you don’t exist?”

“Yeah.”

“That would be best I guess, but holy shit!”He throws his hands up, hitting Hiccup in the face. “Oh, sorry. But seriously Hic, I’m a prince! Always told you I should be treated like royalty.” Jack says with a smirk.

“Yeah, well you can’t blame me for not believing you. You’re pretty ridiculous.” He pauses. “Did you really mean what you said?”

“What?”

“That you don’t care about what they have?”

“Yeah I meant it. Look, half an hour ago, I didn’t know these people existed. I’m not going to go prancing off with them the second they call. Besides, she forgot to take this back,” he whips out the drawing from a pocket, “and this by itself is all I need of that place.”

“You really do look just like them.”

“Yeah.” Jack sighs contently.

“You know I love you, right?”

“Yes I do.” Jack leans over and kisses him on the lips. “I never doubt it.” He smiles back, then a thought crosses his mind.

“They’re not going to leave us alone.”

Jack grabs Hiccup's hand and intertwines their fingers.“Yeah, they won’t. But they are right now. Let’s just enjoy it."

"Wanna go flying?”

“Is that your solution to everything, dragon boy? Don’t answer that. Besides, you really want to go flying when we could be watching your dad chewing out Toothless?”

“Weeeell,” he drawls as his stretches his arms over his head, “I do have a lot of work at the forge. You know, there’s that dagger for Brunhilde to finish, fixing that shield for Throk....” He trails off as Jack stares at him. “You know I’m joking.”

“You better be. Come on, let’s go have some fun before the storm hits.”

“You’re nuts.”

“And you love me, who’s the crazy one now?”

“Still you. Come on.” he stands and shifts, shaking out his wings as Jack pulls out his staff. They fly out the window just in time to hear a shriek as Toothless almost drops one of the kids he’s supposed to be getting off the roof.

“TOOTHLESS!”

“ _Me tickling Da!_ ”****

\-------------------------------------

That night, they curl up together in bed. His arms around Jack’s waist, legs intertwined, Jack’s head on his chest. The only sound is their quiet breathing.

“Jack?” The smaller man sighs, curling tighter around him.

“Hic, I already told you I’m not going.”

“How do you know that’s what I was going to say? I could just have to pee.”

“Because I know you, ya dork. And I’m not leaving.”

“But Jack,” he sits up, reluctantly untangling himself, “this is your family.”

“No. Hic,” Jack props himself up on his elbow, pulling Hiccup down again so they’re face to face. “I don’t know these people. They’re not my family. You and Toothless and Torch and Mer and Punzie and Jamie and Sophie, you guys are my family. Not that stuffy witch.”

“Jack, they knew your parents. They know where you come from, where you’re supposed to be, they...they have what you deserve…” He trails off, rolling onto his back and staring at the ceiling. He saw the Duchess earlier, the clothes she wore, the way she spoke, even the drawing of Jack’s parents showed everything he was meant to have. Jack was meant for something better than this, better than this tiny room and the dirty forge and _him_. Jack climbs on top of him to look him in the eyes as he speaks, grabbing his chin to keep him still.

“I don’t care, okay? Look, in another life, yeah, I would have had all that, would have been their little prince with whatever you think I deserve. But here, now, I’m with you, and I wouldn’t trade this for anything. Nothing they could ever give me would ever make me give up what I have here.” Hiccup opens his mouth, and Jack closes it with his hand. “No, I don’t want to hear it Horrendous. I do not care about your stupid ideas of what you think I need. Do you think any of those stupid court people will give me kisses and cuddles in bed and look absolutely delicious working at the forge? No. No they will not, so I am staying right here with you, you stupid beanpole, get that through your thick skull now.” He ends his little speech with a stare and a pout, face just a few inches from Hiccup’s. He can’t help it, he laughs a little bit, the silly explosive kind that only Jack can get out of him. “What are you laughing at dragon boy? I’m serious.”

“I know, I know, it’s just...the pout. I can’t take the pout seriously.”

“Well, you better start, you’re stuck with me. I’m staying right here.”

“Okay, okay, it’s just-” Jack interrupts by leaning down and kissing him,

“I” another kiss, “am” another kiss,”not” another,”leaving” another, “you” another ,”stupid” one more.”How many times do I have to say it?”

“Well, if you’re telling me like that,” he smirks, “I’d say maybe a million more times” Jack rolls his eyes, but a grin erupts on his face,

“If I have to” he mutters has he leans down again.

Later, as they drift off to sleep, he manages to persuade himself that things would be okay. He buries his face in white hair and breathes. Things will be alright.

\------------- _Toodleoonseeyasoon_ *****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, so all that happened. Notes:  
> 1) Jack Frost is a can't sit on chairs gay, you cannot change my mind.  
> 2)All italics are Dragonese, translations:  
> *You say  
> **I do say  
> ***Stupid Brother  
> ****I was kidding, Dad!  
> *****The story continues  
> Directly taken from the HTTYD books, yes I did that.


	3. Jack Frost: Wanted Dead or Alive

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Has it been ages? Yes, yes it has. I've been procrastinating, trying to figure out the perfect ending to this chapter, when I realized that I can chop off the last bit and make it into chapter four, and give you guys this in the mean time. I'm trying. Hope you enjoy!  
> (Also, eventually I will post a map of Anord, I just have to clean it up and figure out how to scan things)  
> (Also also, this chapter is where a lot of cameos start to come in, fair warning)

“HICCUP! Put some pants on and get down here!” Gobber’s bellow startles him awake from three floors below. He tries to sit up before finding he can’t, weighed down by Jack curled around him.

“Jack.” He whispers. The bum doesn’t move. He’d sleep forever if someone let him. But Hiccup is not in the mood to let him. “Jack.” A little louder this time, Jack begins to stir. Gobber yells again,

“I’m not going to say it again Haddock! Get down here or I’m coming up!”

“Jack!” He yells, giving up on coddling and pushing his idiot boyfriend onto the floor.

“Wassgoinon?” His head darts up, worried for a moment, then he settles back onto the floor as Hiccup sits up and attaches his prosthetic. 

“Gobber’s calling me, and you’re a bum. So, the floor.”

“I am not a bum!” Jack protests with as much dignity as someone shirtless on the floor can manage, sticking out his tongue. “I have a deep respect for the sanctity of sleep.” He jumps back onto the bed, burrowing into the covers.

“Well tone down your respect, some of us have to work today.” Hiccup fires back, pacing the room in circles looking for his clothes.

“You could just stay here.”

“Yeah, no. I do not want a repeat of last Snoggletog.”

Jack’s cheeks color at the memory. “Maybe you going to work isn’t such a bad id-your vest is in the third drawer.”

“Thanks.” Hiccup tugs on the offending item of clothing. “It’s definitely a good idea, I’m not going to be your human shield again.”

“But it worked so well last time!”

‘For you!”

“That’s the point!”

They pause a moment. “I’ll see you later?”

“Yeah. Love you.”

“Love you too.” A quick peck on the lips and then Hiccup is sliding down the ladder, bounding down the stairs, running face first into Gobber in the storage room. 

The blonde blacksmith gives him a level stare. “Ya got lucky this time,” he growls, turning towards the forge stairs.

“Can we note that you have yet to make it up the stairs?”

“That’s why ye’re lucky. Now come on, I got a job for ye,” he raises his voice, “AND THE LEECH TOO IF HIS MAJESTY WOULD GET OUT OF BED!”

Hiccup squirms at the mention of ‘majesty’. “You heard about that?”

“ Everyone’s heard about it lad, word spreads fast, and your fire demon of a brother has a loose mouth. Besides, ye’re dad’s my best friend. You really think he wouldn’t tell me about something that nearly got the bane of his existence out of the Wilderwest?” Stoick tolerates Jack, barely.

“Well that’s….I don’t know what else I expected.”

“Good, ye’re lowering your expectations.” He stops for a moment, looking uncomfortable, which is odd for a man who most of the Wilderwest had seen in underpants and nothing else on several occasions. “So...what’s going to happen? With the leech being noble and all?”

“Hopefully nothing. They just…left. Real jerks about the whole thing, but they didn’t do anything.”

Gobber sighs and places a hand on Hiccup’s shoulder, “Listen, if there’s anything I’ve learned in my years of dealing with the nobles, it’s that they never let go of something once they sink their teeth into it. They’ll be back, there’s nothing ye can do about it.”

“It doesn’t have to end badly though,” he shrugs away from Gobber, “We can talk it out with them, make a deal, something that works for everyone.” He’s hoping. At the very least, no one is going to take Jack without going through him.

“Maybe, maybe.” Gobber doesn’t meet his eyes.

“So!” Hiccup tries to change the subject, “What are we doing today? I got all the orders done yesterday, did something new come in already?”

“Not exactly. I won’t be doing much today, taking a well deserved day to meself. You, on the other hand, got quite the list.”

“A list? A list of what?” He asks tentatively.

“A list of jobs, what else? Thor, I thought you were smart.” Gobber fishes out a folded piece of parchment from somewhere in his breeches, handing it to Hiccup, whose eyes widen as he sees the insane amount of work to be done. 

“How is there this much to do? Most of this isn’t even forge work, it’s errands.” He notices. 

Gobber sighs. “Short answer, the Thorstons.”

“Why am I not surprised?” Hiccup mutters.

“Ye know Loki of Asgard?”

“Yeah….”

“Well it turns out he’s organizing that dance at the hall in a few days. The troublemakers worship the man, think he’s the real Loki born again or something like that, do whatever he want. Anyway, he asked who could do odd jobs for the party, and the idiots, eager to please the bugger-”

“Volunteered us.”

“Exactly. Most of it seems fairly straight forward, you shouldn’t have too much trouble, but everything written in blue ink needs to be done before dark, who knew party planning was so time sensitive?”

“Wait, you’re not helping?”

“I am a blacksmith!” Gobber declares as if offended, “and getting on in years too. I can’t go running all around Anord every time some idiot asks.”

“But I can.” Hiccup observes dryly.

“Exactly! Now get going already, take his highness if you want to, just get it done.”

“Hold on a minute,” Hiccup ducks under the hook hand pushing him towards the stairs. “You still haven’t explained why we’re going along with what the twins want, or why-” He scans the list for a good example, “I have to go visit Angel’s Necromancy?” Strange way to prepare for a party.

“Oh yeah, they’re hiring the guy to raise the dead to do some grunt work. Waste of money if you ask me.”

“And listening to the twins?”

“Stoick says play nice with the Asgardians, at least ‘till the party’s over. Promote unity between tribes or somethin’ like that. All I know is that it means the list for us, and by us, I mean you.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“You’re welcome, now get moving already.”

Gobber shoves him down the stairs to the forge, two steps behind. “I’ll take care of things around here for-HEY!” Gobber shouts at the wild mane of blond hair that is pocketing a set of knives. “Get out of here you dirty little thief!”

The mane turns around and gives a little wave, revealing the face of a short young woman. “Hey Gobber, hey Hic, don’t mind me, I was just leaving….” She dashes towards the door, but Gobber steps forward and snags the strap of her bag with his hook, dragging her backwards into the center of the shop.

“Give ‘em back, you little cretin.” He growls. 

“Fine, fine, why so touchy this morning?” She pulls three knives out of her knapsack, placing them on the counter before falling back and rocking on her heels, the picture of innocence. 

“The rest.”

“Gobber! I am shocked! You don’t trust me?” She clasps a hand to her chest, extracting three more knives from her fur vest. 

“Of course I don’t trust ya, I’ve met ya.”

She lets out a dramatic gasp, “You wound me so.”

Gobber appeals to the heavens, turning his eyes ceiling-wards. “Are they all going to be like this today? First Mr. Complains-about-the-list, now the burglar, what’s next?”

Jack seems to take this as his cue to enter, crashing down the stairs with his staff in hand. “Hey! Cazi!” He greets the burglar smiling.

“Heeeeey, Jackie boy. Any way you can get these two off my back?” She points between Hiccup and Gobber.

“Not a chance.”

“Eh, worth a shot. I’ll just be going then…..” This time it’s Hiccup who stops her, grabbing her wrist and pulling a knife out of her sleeve. 

“The one in the boot too.” 

“You know me so well.” She wipes a fake tear from her eye as she hands the knives over. Hiccup just rolls his eyes at the ridiculousness of his friend, failing to hide a small smile.

“Alright, you lot get out of here already! Out, out, out!” Gobber grabs the three of them and shoves them out the door, taking a final knife out of Camicazi’s hair before slamming the door shut. The shop sign rattles on it’s hook, threatening to fall like always. Gobber yells through the door. “Remember, everything written in blue ink needs to be done before dark!” 

“Well, his charm has yet to wear thin,” Hiccup mutters to himself, brushing off his vest and inspecting the list. 

Jack places his chin on Hiccup’s shoulder, “Whatcha got there?”

“Party set up. Apparently I’m an errand boy today.”

Jack howls with laughter. “Bet you wish you were chief now, huh?”

“Absolutely not,” he protests.

“But Hic,” Camicazi comes from behind and slings an arm around his shoulder the best she can, considering he’s over a foot taller than her. “If you’re Chief, that makes me best friend of the Chief, which practically gives me diplomatic immunity-”

“I’m not becoming Chief so you can steal more stuff, you have plenty as it is.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, you can never have too much stuff.”

“You’re hopeless.”

“Ah, but you love me.” She beams.

“Should I be worried?” Jack chimes in with a cheeky smile.

“That’s it!” Hiccup shouts playfully. “Fish is my new best friend!”

“Oh, relax,” she drawls before rubbing her hands together gleefully. “Now let’s see that list, what can we make fun of you for doing?” 

Jack snatches the list out of Hiccup’s hands while he’s distracted. “Hey!”

“Let’s see…” Jack is having entirely too much fun with this, “collecting decorations, talking to a caterer, necromancy...Oooo!”

“What?” Cazi demands, jumping for the list.

“The Grimhildes!”

“Excellent, let’s get moving!”

“Wait a minute, who says you’re coming?”

“I do!”

“I do!”

“That’s a two to one majority Hiccy, we’re coming. Now back to topic, the Grimhildes!”

“What’s so special about them that you want to walk all the way to Nyx to meet with a potionmaker?”

“Okay, I grant you E’s cool n’ all, but I’m more interested in her friend.”

“Oh, so you’re  _ interested _ in Jay.” Jack wiggles his eyebrows, taunting. Cazi takes a knife out of her boot and holds it to his throat. 

“I am not  _ interested _ in Jay, we have a bet going on about who can steal the best loot. He’s not a bad burglar-you know, for a boy.” She adds hurriedly.”

“I smell romance!”

“I will kill you slowly.”

Hiccup sighs, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “You didn’t take anything that belongs to my dad, did you?”

“Do you think I want a repeat of your twelfth birthday?’

“You know, someday you two are going to tell me what happened.”

“NO!”

“NO!”

“How about,” Jack sidles up to Cazi, “you tell me what happened on Hic’s twelfth birthday and I’ll tell you something I know about Jay?”

“No-wait. What do you know?” She asks tentatively.

“Secret for a secret!” Jack croons.

“I really will kill you.”

“Hey!” Hiccup pushes them apart. “No murder! How about since you guys are so excited about the chore list, we split the errands.” He tears the list in three, handing a section to each of them.  

“Aww, Hic, you want us to split up?” Come on, we can ditch Cazi, sneak into an alleyway somewhere and-”

“Hey! Not in front of the innocent here!” Cazi shouts with her eyes covered as Jack begins to lean in.

Hiccup makes a small disappointed noise. “You are hardly innocent.” He shoots back, kissing Jack on the cheek for good measure. 

“I still don’t want to see that!”

“But you want to do it, don’t you?”

“Jack….” Let it be said he tried to warn him.

“With Jay-”

“Shut up Frost!” And now she’s chasing him down the street, shouting and waving a sword previously hidden in her vest. 

Hiccup calls after them, “Don’t kill him!” He rethinks it, “Or at least wait until he finishes his part of the errands!”

“No promises Haddock!” Camicazi shouts back as the two turn a corner and disappear from sight. Hiccup shakes his head fondly as he reads through his portion of the list. Then he shifts, flying over the rooftops. Time to visit the Skellingtons.

\--------------------

Jack, in his defense, does most of the chores on his part of the list. He figures the sooner he get this done, the sooner he can go visit Punzie. He’s near Corona anyway, might as well make it fun. He had fully expected to be done in an hour or two, then he could go chat with Punzie, eat some pie, make fun of Flynn…..he did not expect that he’d be running through the streets of San Fran with an angry ex-thief and a caveman on his tail. His second run for his life today. 

“You couldn’t have waited until I finished testing?” Guy yells after him. 

“You’re fixing my satchel, Frost!” Flynn’s gaining on him.

“It’s a man purse, just admit it!” He shouts back.

“Never!”

Jack puts on an extra burst of speed, turning a corner, dodging a horse cart, and darting through an alley. He spots an open back door and practically leaps through it, using a cold breeze to slam it shut behind him. He sits panting in the middle of the floor, relishing his death-defying escape. Ok, maybe not death-defying, but it had been pretty close. 

“So who’s trying to kill you today?” He shrieks, lashing out at the voice with his staff. There’s a blur as the staff is ripped from his hands and he’s spun around and lifted off the ground, landing on his feet. “Still jumpy as ever I see.” Once the world stops spinning, the blur solidifies into a young woman with choppy black and blue dyed hair.

“Go-go!”

“What?”

“Do you have to do that everytime!”

“Hey, it’s fun. I thought you were an enthusiast of that.” She sucks on a candy stick, pulling it out of her mouth with a prolonged POP. “So, who’s trying to kill you today?”

He straightens out his hoodie and snatches his staff back. “Well, this morning it was Camicazi, but right now it’s Guy and Flynn. I may have snuck into Guy’s lab and frozen something, and that screwed up another thing, and long story short, Flynn’s man purse has a huge hole in it.”

“So you’re just here to hide?”

“Umm, yeah...wait!” He fishes his list out of a pocket.  “I actually was supposed to come here, I’m supposed to pick up a package from you, something for the party on Freya’s Day.”

“Come on then,” she says with another long suck on the candy stick. “Let’s see if we can find it.” 

She leads him down a hallway into the main post office of the Second Ring. Go-go’s one of the few non-nobles with a semi-government sanctioned job, emphasis on the semi-. She plops herself down at a desk, props up her feet, and takes a screwdriver to the mechanical boots she’s wearing. 

“How’s the 3.2 upgrade going?” That’s right, he listens when the nerds talk! Well, sometimes. 

“Where have you been? I’m on the 4.7 now, completely redid the heels for less friction. Less friction means more speed.”

“Okay then..” Go-go, as the name suggests-wait? Does she have a real name? If she does, he doesn’t know it- has a bit of a speed obsession. She has no natural abilities, but as an Animator, she can build practically anything. She gestures with the screwdriver to some shelves in the corner. 

“Whatever you’re looking for should be over there somewhere. You know recipient and sender?”

“Ummm…..” He checks the list. “Yeah.”

“Good, you don’t need me then.” She proceeds to yank off one of her boots and tinker with it, ignoring him. Jack turns to the shelves and his heart sinks at the sight of a massive disorganized pile of packages. “Wait, I almost forgot, this is addressed to you. Meant to send it to the Wilderwest, but you’re here now.” She tosses a sealed scroll at his head.

“Ow!” Go-go has excellent aim. He rubs his head as he inspects it. “What is it?” He asks, struggling with the thick wax and ribbon. 

“How should I know?” She mutters with a wrench in her mouth. “It looks stuffy, didn’t know you knew anyone with class.”

“Hey!” He shouts, mildly offended. “I know Punzie!”

“Yeah, but she associates with you and Fitzherbert, minimizes her class points.”

“Okay, but I’m classier than Flynn, right?”

“Nope. On a class scale, you’re below Fred.”

“Come on, I’m better than  _ Fred _ !” He drawls in mock outrage. 

“Barely,” she grunts. 

He goes back to messing with the scroll, then whispers under his breath. “Shit.” The seal is a silver snowflake, the same one that had pinned up Elsa’s cloak. 

“What?” Go-go looks up from her boots.

“It’s from the Ice Court.”

“Wait, the Ice Court Ice Court?”

“What other Ice Court is there?”

“I thought you were making that whole Prince thing up. Heard it from Fred, assumed he was on something.”

“I wish, the whole thing’s real and these people are asshats.” He reads from the scroll as he unrolls it, “Dear Jackson Overland, we the members of the First Ice Court of the Blessed City of Anord ask you to join us as determined by the elevated status if your birth…It just goes on like that for ages. What assholes.”

“Seriously.”

He slumps against the wall. This is getting out of hand. The Court didn’t even wait a whole day before contacting him. What if they didn’t take no for an answer? What if they tried to back it up with force? What if someone got hurt? Then again, he thought as he re-read the letter, it doesn’t say he has to  _ do _ anything. Maybe he can just ignore this. Don’t antagonize them, don’t respond-

“Jack!”

“What?”

“You in there? You went quiet for a minute.”

“It’s fine, I’m just thinking.”

“Ah, okay, I’ll leave you too it, I know how difficult that is for you.”

“Oh shove off-Oh!” He spots the package he needs out of the corner of his eye. His smile melts as he realizes the package is half his height and probably twice his weight. “Hey, Go-go…”

“I’m not helping you carry it, my job is strictly organization and supervision.”

“But you have the boots-”

“And you can fly, figure it out Frosty.”

“But Guy and Flynn are probably still out there trying to kill me-”

“I wish them luck, now get out.”

\----------------------

Hiccup is smiling self-satisfactorily as he walks out of the Heap house. Getting a few party charms from Silas was the last thing he had to do today. He’s carrying far too much, but a quick shift makes it much easier to lug around the assorted supplies he’s been collecting before flying out of the Ramblings, heading home in the late afternoon sun. He barges into the forge, shifting back to shout, “Gobber! Where should I put all of this!?”

“There you are!”

“Hey Toothless, can you help me with this stuff-Ow!” He drops something large and heavy on his toe while Toothless watches from his perch on the counter, seemingly bored. The second he distentangles himself from the many bags, packages, and scrolls he’s holding, Toothless grabs his wrist.

“Finally, I thought you’d never finish, you’re coming with me.”

“Why?”

“You messed up my last chance for a date with Stormfly, now you’re going to be my new wingman, so come on!”

“Wait-”

Jack bursts through the door. Rather, a giant package with Jack’s limbs and frost wrapped around it bursts through the door and deposits itself in the middle of the shop. 

“Perfect timing, save me!”

“Actually, Toothless, I kinda do need to talk to him, can you give us a minute?”

“Nope,” Toothless makes to leave, dragging Hiccup behind him. 

“Come on!”

“Just a few minutes!”

Toothless snorts in that way only someone who spends a large portion of their time as a dragon can. “Fine, but no doing stuff, okay?”

“Seriously? We don’t think about that constantly, you know.”

“Speak for yourself.” Jack makes a show of looking his boyfriend up and down. 

“Not helping, Jack. Just give us a few minutes, okay Toothless, then I’ll watch Stormfly turn you down again.”

“You don’t know-”

“She’s not going to date you-”

“Three minutes, then you’re my wingman.” Toothless sulks out of the shop, glaring daggers at Jack.

“So, what’s wrong?”

\--------------------

The scroll is heavy in his pocket, taunting him. The whole way home he’d been frantic over the Court’s message. It wasn’t violent, wasn’t demanding, required no answer. He’d already made the decision to stay in the Wilderwest, to stay with Hiccup, but….someone could get hurt. That letter could turn into guards banging on the door real fast. Who knew what the Court would do about his situation. Telling Hiccup about the letter could mean putting him in danger. 

“Jack?”

“What? Oh, sorry, zoned out for a minute there.”

“You okay? What did you want to talk about?” Hiccup grabs his hand, squeezes it, traces of worry in his eyes. Jack squirms a moment before responding. 

“It’s nothing serious, just wanted a few minutes with you. Haven’t seen you at all today.”

“I was a little worried I wouldn’t see you at all, Cazi seemed out for blood.” They laugh, and the scroll burns in his pocket.

  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have you spotted all the cameos? 
> 
> As always, I'm on Tumblr @hairasuntouchedaspartoftheamazon  
> Come visit and cry about HTTYD 3 with me!


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